Strong Winds at all Elevations in Slab Cliffs

If I had to use one word to describe today's tour, windy would be the word. We could feel strong E and NE winds almost everywhere we went today. Blowing snow existed in lower-elevation, tree-covered areas and on exposed, upper-elevation slopes. Many of the more exposed upper-elevation slopes had raised ski tracks and uneven surfaces created by wind-scouring. We had to stand still and hide our faces due to the gale-force winds on the ridgetops. We moved to the leeward side of the ridge to see if drifts of wind-blown snow existed, but we only found small patches of shallow wind-deposited snow. We did not see any signs of wind slab instability. We retreated into more sheltered areas below the ridge hoping to find softer, more consistent snow. These areas still held wind-affected snow. Variable snow surfaces existed everywhere, and the conditions changed about every 10 to 20 feet. Sunny slopes remained firm and frozen today.